Whether it is birth control, Abortion, Blue Lives matter, or whatever it is, as long as the Supreme Court seat isn't refilled, states are going to pass almost anything because the supreme court can no longer stop them. Then, when we have a new supreme court justice it could cause states to secede who want to keep their new laws and not give them up. This is the problem of not seating a new justice as soon as possible, because it jeapordizes retaining all 50 states in the Union through unrest.
Louisiana governor signs 'blue lives matter' bill
Story highlights
- Louisiana makes it a hate crime to target police and first responders
- "Blue Lives Matter" bill is as a response to "Black Lives Matter" slogan
(CNN)With
the nationwide friction between the Black Lives Matter movement and
supporters of law enforcement as a backdrop, Louisiana Gov. John Bel
Edwards signed a bill Thursday expanding the state's hate-crimes statute
to add the targeting of police officers, firefighters and EMS
personnel.
"Coming from a
family of law enforcement officers, I have great respect for the work
that they do and the risks they take to ensure our safety," Edwards
said Thursday, adding, "they deserve every protection that we can give
them."
Traditionally,
a crime is considered a hate crime if the victim is targeted because of
identity-based characteristics such as their race, ethnicity, religion,
gender, sexual orientation, etc.
Louisiana becomes the first state to add one's chosen vocation to that list, something that has rankled opponents.
"Working
in a profession is not a personal characteristic, and it is not
immutable," said Anti-Defamation League Regional Director Allison
Padilla-Goodman.
While
Padilla-Goodman said the ADL supports enhanced penalties for crimes
against law enforcement officers, she said the law "weakens the impact
of the Hate Crimes Act by adding more categories of people who are
already better protected under other laws."
"We are not happy that it is being signed into law."
Deadly ambush prompted bill
State
Rep. Lance Harris wrote HB 953 after Darren Goforth, a Texas sheriff's
deputy, was ambushed, shot and killed while in uniform last August.
"It looked like it was strictly done because someone didn't like police
officers, like a hate crime," Harris said, adding that including
officers and first responders to the hate-crime statute made sense
because the existing law already is broad, covering attacks because of
the victim's race or gender or affiliation with certain organizations.
"In the news, you see a lot of people terrorizing and threatening
police officers on social media just due to the fact that they are
policemen. Now, this (new law) protects police and first responders
under the hate-crime law," Harris said, adding that he considers
legislative action necessary because the crime is "done strictly out of
hate for the officer and his uniform."
"For
those individuals who choose to target our heroes, the message
formalized in this legislative act should be clear and the consequences
severe," Col. Mike Edmonson, superintendent of the Louisiana State
Police, said Thursday.
Response to Black Lives Matter
Former
police Lt. Randy Sutton of Las Vegas, a 34-year police veteran and
spokesman for Blue Lives Matter -- a national organization made up of
police and their supporters formed in response to the Black Lives Matter
movement -- said he classifies police officers as a minority group.
He
said the new law is "important because symbolically it advises that
there is a value to the lives of police officers. When you give value,
it acts as a deterrent in one sense, but it also is a tool to add extra
punishment for the assaults and the crimes against them."
"Very rarely is it a first-time offender that kills cops," Sutton said,
adding that it's usually people committing crimes like robbery or who
are being pursued by police who turn to shooting officers.
That
Edwards signed the so-called "Blue Lives Matter" bill comes as no
surprise; the first-term Democrat has said he would since it sailed
through both chambers of the Louisiana Legislature in recent weeks,
including by a unanimous 91-0 margin in the Republican-led House of
Representatives.
"The overarching message is that hate crimes will not be tolerated in Louisiana," he said after signing it.
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